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School Street tow-away
hours added

Question: Could it be possible for the city to extend the tow-away hours on School Street between Lusitana Street and Nuuanu Avenue by two hours, to 2:30 to 6:30 p.m.? Traffic is constantly backed up in this area. The number of affected stalls would be very small, and similar tow hours are already in effect elsewhere (such as King Street near City Hall).

Answer: You asked this question several months ago, and we now have a definitive answer: Yes.

The city Department of Transportation Services conducted a field investigation of the area between 2:30 and 3:30 p.m. and 5:30 and 6:30 p.m., said acting Director George "Keoki" Matsumoto.

Based on the findings, he said the following modifications will be made to improve traffic flow:

» The afternoon tow-away zone hours on the mauka side of South School Street, between Lusitana Street and Leilehua Lane, will be from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m. instead of 3:30 to 5:30 p.m.

» A 24-hour tow-away zone will be established on the mauka side of South School Street between Leilehua Lane and Pali Highway.

» A double yellow center line will be painted, along with lane lines to mark two Ewa-bound lanes on South School Street between Lusitana Street and Pali Highway.

Q: From our lanai we see that the street lights along the park side of Ala Moana from Kamakee to Piikoi streets have been out for months. Just how potentially dangerous this is shows in the contrast between this and the mauka side, which is fully illuminated. The park side is very dark. We've tried calling the city's Street Lights at 523-4281, but it is busy all day and far into the night. Can you help?

A: The city forwarded your complaint to the state Department of Transportation's street light maintenance office on Nov. 9. Ala Moana between Kamakee and Piikoi streets is under state jurisdiction.

An automobile accident a couple of months ago knocked out a nearby transformer for the lights in that area, said transportation spokesman Scott Ishikawa.

"We recently put back the necessary hardware, but had to wait for HECO to connect the power, which is scheduled to occur next week," he said Friday.

Meanwhile, you weren't getting through to anyone at the city because you were calling an outdated number.

The number for the city's street lighting operations changed to 564-6113 when the office moved from Kakaako to Manana in 2001, said Clarice Kam, of the Public Building and Electrical Maintenance Division. But a forwarding message could not be used because the number was tied to the city's internal telephone exchange.

The number is good 24 hours a day, operated by city staff during the normal workday and by a contracted answering service at night, Kam said. It helps repair crews if an exact address is given.

Meanwhile, another option is to call the Department of Customer Services, at 523-4381, for any city-related complaint.

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